Sunday, January 21, 2007

Three Generations of Excitement

Today is my Mother & step dad Michael’s 40th wedding anniversary. No, there isn’t going to be a big party or even a small gathering- they didn’t want one. The closest they even came to acknowledging it was two lines inserted in a forwarded email about various birthdays coming up (February is the target month in our family: Niece Mary, Sam, German dd Ilka, Step-Dad, Uncle, Grandmother, sister Crystal, Jessica, sister Holly, plus a couple of friends & an anniversary) This is pretty typical for them- Mother doesn’t like to be the center of attention, & Michael is more comfortable at home surrounded by people he chooses. I’m certain that sometime during the course of the next 6 months, as their first child David prepares for his wedding, there will be some sort of recognition of this important milestone. My memories of the day are rather vague (I was nearly 4 yr old); I do remember that it was raining, that my feet were wet & cold, & thinking that the minister was my uncle. Anyway, even though they don’t read my blog (I don’t think they even know about it) I want to wish them “Happy Anniversary” & hope they have many years together ahead.

My KMKS kit came Friday from my secret swap buddy. How exciting to open a gift from someone you’ve never met, who took the time to find about you, & created something that you would enjoy! I must say, Kelly did a pretty good job: a rose colored felted handbag, 2 sets of double-pointed needles, cables needles, split-ring stitch markers, a tape measure, a notebook, 3 little mechanical pencils (I love these), some Sweetheart candies, 3 skeins of KnitPick’s Highland Wool in dark rose, & a pattern for a pair of mittens with cables on the back. I’m looking forward to starting them, as soon as I finish the scarf for my sister. Even though I don’t know if my packaged arrived in Washington yet, I posted a picture of the bag I made & the kit I put together in the “Knitting Projects” album. This was a fun swap to do & I’m looking forward to the next one I signed up for- Winter Scarf Knit Kit Swap, which I don’t have to make anything until the kit arrives!

Jessica has been in & out of here all weekend- she had a funeral to attend & decided to get her car cleaned up to sell. I think I told you that her car died just before Thanksgiving & has been parked in front of our house ever since, while she has been using our old car. A friend of ours, who Chris consulted when he was trying to fix it, has offered to buy it from her, as is, for $300 & will arrange to tow it (he just started his own auto mechanic business this past fall & will use it for parts). I’ve kind of been riding her about it, because she’s been dragging her feet getting the paperwork together, so she took the weekend off work (not a good idea) to get everything done. It took a lot of prodding, but all the forms are filled out, signed, & a power of attorney signed so Chris can take care of anything that is missing (knowing Jess, something will be missing ) I hate to believe it, but she seems to be using drugs again- she’s spacey, disorganized, & smells “skunky”, which Chris says is from the marijuana she’s smoking. I just hate this; it is such a waste of a promising life. She thinks she’s just having fun, that it doesn’t affect her adversely; she won’t see that her whole personality & demeanor is projecting “Loser”. She can’t understand why people aren’t jumping at the chance to hire her (she’s looking for a second job again, to pay off her medical bills from the accident last June.) Part of me just wants to tell her to leave, go away, & don’t come around again until she has herself straightened out. The mother part of me wants to fix & save her, which I know I can’t do- she has to decide to give it up. Please, please pray for her &amp;amp;amp; me; I know that she has to be broken down to rock bottom & I have to let it happen, no matter how much it breaks my heart. My biggest fear for her is what all this is going to cost her in the end- jobs, relationships with friends & family, possibly even her life. Again, what a waste.

So as not to end on a total downer:

Why we love children1) NUDITY

I was driving with my three young children one warm summer evening when a woman in the convertible ahead of us stood up and waved. She was stark naked! As I was reeling from the shock, I heard my 5-year-old shout from the back seat, "Mom! That lady isn't wearing a seat belt!"

2) OPINIONS

On the first day of school, a first-grader handed his teacher a note from his mother. The note read, "The opinions expressed by this child are not necessarily those of his parents."

3) KETCHUP

A woman was trying hard to get the ketchup out of the jar. During her struggle the phone rang so she asked her 4-year-old daughter to answer the phone. "Mommy can't come to the phone to talk to you right now. She's hitting the bottle."

4) MORE NUDITY

A little boy got lost at the YMCA and found himself in the women's locker room. When he was spotted, the room burst into shrieks, with ladies grabbing towels and running for cover. The little boy watched in amazement and then asked, "What's the matter, haven't you ever seen a little boy before?"

5) POLICE # 1

While taking a routine vandalism report at an elementary school, I was interrupted by a little girl about 6 years old. Looking up and down at my uniform, she asked, "Are you a cop?" "Yes," I answered and continued writing the report. "My mother said if I ever needed help I should ask the police.Is that right?" "Yes, that's right," I told her. "Well, then," she said as she extended her foot toward me, "would you please tie my shoe?"

6) POLICE # 2

It was the end of the day when I parked my police van in front of the station. As I gathered my equipment, my K-9 partner, Jake, was barking, and I saw a little boy staring in at me "Is that a dog you got back there?" he asked. "It sure is," I replied. Puzzled, the boy looked at me and then towards the back of the van. Finally he said, "What'd he do?"

7) DRESS-UP

A little girl was watching her parents dress for a party. When she saw her dad donning his tuxedo, she warned, "Daddy, you shouldn't wear that suit." "And why not, darling?" "You know that it always gives you a headache the next morning. "

About Me

I'm a Christian, married to my high school sweetie; I'm the mother of three (mostly)adult children, 2 crazy & beloved cats; I work because I have to, but fortunately like my job: rare free time is spent in the garden, dancing & attending Highland Gatherings, & currently, doing a lot of knitting.